New Delhi, Mar 20: The four men convicted of the gang rape and murder of a Delhi woman on December 16, 2012 were hanged in the darkness of pre-dawn on Friday, ending a horrific chapter in India's long history of sexual assault that had seared the nation's soul. Mukesh Singh (32), Pawan Gupta (25), Vinay Sharma (26) and Akshay Kumar Singh (31) were executed at 5.30 am for the savage assault in an empty moving bus on the 23-year-old physiotherapy intern who came to be known the world over as Nirbhaya, the fearless one.
This is the first time that four men have been hanged together in Tihar Jail, South Asia's largest prison complex that houses more than 16,000 inmates. The executions were carried out after the men exhausted every possible legal avenue to escape the gallows. Their desperate attempts only postponed the inevitable by less than two months after the first date of execution was set for January 22.
They were hanged at 5.30 am, Director General of Prison Sandeep Goel said.
After raping and brutalising the woman, the men, one of whom was a juvenile at the time, dumped her on the road and left for dead on the cold winter night. Her friend who was with her was also severely beaten and thrown out along with her. She was so severely violated that her insides were spilling out when she was taken to hospital. She died in a Singapore hospital after battling for her life for a fortnight.
Six people, including the four convicts and the juvenile, were named as accused.
While Ram Singh allegedly committed suicide in the Tihar Jail days after the trial began in the case, the juvenile was released in 2015 after spending three years in a correctional home.
The road to the gallows was a long and circuitous one, going through the lower courts, the High Court, the Supreme Court and the president's office before going back to the Supreme Court that heard and rejected various curative petitions.
The death warrants were deferred by a court thrice on the grounds that the convicts had not exhausted all their legal remedies and that the mercy petition of one or the other was before the president.
On March 5, a trial court issued fresh death warrants for March 20 at 5.30 am as the final date for the execution.
Comments
dear HINDU Brothers And Dear Muslim Brothers kindly Aware of Amit shah dont listen his anit religious speech , his main intention is to divide hindus and muslims in mangalore like gujrath please tiz is my request with mangalorean public
Attention Mangaloreans: Plz hoard essential foods items, Mr.Amit shah on his way to Mangalore to create fasaad.
shah need beef chilly so visitng mangalore
Phir se aaraha hai mangalore me aag lagana, bechare hindu bhaiyion ku bhadka kar hindu muslim ke naam par jhagda karane aaraha hai...... bachke rehna bhayiyon mama aaraha hai
Amit shah suffering from poll fever
BJP will win in karnataka this time.. We will work for that..
Shah always comes with a hidden agenda
Great... we are waiting for the arrival. We are so honoured to welcome you
Shah's previous visit was not so effective. may be the same aim this time also
Communal shah visiting Mangalore to divide mangaloreans.. protest
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